Compostable packaging producer Tipa (Hod Hasharon / Israel; www.tipa-corp.com) said it is increasing its Italian operations to take advantage of the country’s leading position in the search for sustainable alternatives to conventional plastics. The country has more than 85 companies active in plastics processing, and they export nearly half of their output. Compostables account for a major share of production, with Assobioplastiche (Rome / Italy; www.assobioplastiche.org), the bioplastics, biodegradable and compostable materials industry association, calculating that from 2012 to 2019, annual production volume rose more than 150% to 101,000 t.

Tipa’s portfolio includes high-performance compostable films and laminates that the Israeli firm says perform like conventional films but can be disposed of through Italy’s existing composting infrastructure and break down in soil in the same way as organic waste. Daphna Nissenbaum, chief executive and co-founder, said Tipa was “leading commercial developments and compostable solutions on a global scale” and chose Italy for its expansion due to the a favourable composting infrastructure and a strategic geographic location.

Annalisa Nissola, who has more than 10 years of experience in sales and business development in the packaging industry, has been appointed as the company’s first Italian sales director. Her tasks include creating partnerships with players across the packaging supply chain in the transition to compostable packaging. She said Tipa’s technology is primed to respond to the Italian market’s high demand for sustainable compostable packaging.